Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Holds Press Briefing At UN
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 21: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a press briefing during the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters, September 21, 2017 in New York City. The most pressing issues facing the assembly this year include North Korea's nuclear ambitions, violence against the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar, and the debate over climate change. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 775047516
Not Released (NR)
Drew Angerer, Getty ImagesDrew Angerer / Getty Images

While Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said budgets balance themselves, a new report from the Fraser Institute begs to disagree.

It concludes he’s growing our per person federal debt at a faster rate — 5% over four years — than any other prime minister going back to Confederation who didn’t face a world war or economic recession.

Think about that. No PM in the 150-year history of our country is accumulating per person federal debt at a faster pace than Trudeau, in relatively stable economic times.

Debt which will result in higher taxes and reduced public services, because more tax money will have to be diverted to pay interest on government debt.

At the moment when the Trudeau government should be paying down public debt, it’s heading in the opposite direction.

Based on the Fraser Institute study titled “An Analysis of Federal Debt in Canada by Prime Ministers Since Confederation”, even former Liberal prime ministers in similar economic circumstances to Trudeau disagreed with his approach.

Jean Chretien reduced per person federal debt by 13% during his time in office, Paul Martin by 8%, Lester B. Pearson, 6%.

Leading up to the 2015 election, Trudeau repeatedly told voters his government would run balanced budgets, before reversing himself during the campaign.

Even then, Trudeau promised Canadians “modest” deficits of $9.9 billion in 2016-17, $9.5 billion in 2017-18, $5.7 billion in 2018-19 and a $1 billion surplus for 2019-20, the final year of his election mandate.

Today, his government pegs the 2016-17 deficit at $17.8 billion, 80% higher than his commitment in the 2015 election, with no end of deficits in sight.

On Tuesday, the Trudeau government will deliver its fall economic statement.

According to economists, it’s expected to announce the Liberals will cut their projected deficit for this fiscal year (2017-18) by $10 to $12 billion from its current level of $28.5 billion, because of stronger than expected revenues.

But even that will be nowhere near Trudeau’s election promise of a $9.5 billion deficit for this year.

We’re tempted to say Trudeau is spending our money like a drunken sailor, but that would be unfair.

This Week's Flyers

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.